Review of The Bourne Identity (2002) by Armand D — 13 Jun 2012

Robert Ludlum's Bourne series is so well known now that its hero is often mentioned in the same breath as James Bond. And truth be told, Jason Bourne is a hero as potentially badass as Ian Fleming's MI6 agent.

The Bourne Identity is a complex web of conspiracies, amnesia, and high-octane but realistic action, and for the most part, it works. Tony Gilroy and William Blake Herron successfully craft a script that makes all of Europe and the world at large feel quickly and easily accessible, and the give us enough juicy plot elements to chew on that it makes up for the fact that the hero is, at the end of the day, a blank slate.

Yes, Bourne is a hero that is blank by design, but still, it could have potentially worked against the movie, but instead, Gilroy, Herron, and director Doug Liman make it a strength, focusing on the mysteriousness of the character while giving him plenty of awesome action sequences to wade through.

Those setpieces are directed skillfully by Liman, who knows how to make action exciting and, at the same time, make us aware of what's going on within. It doesn't hurt that the found a perfectly cast actor in the lead role, in the form of Matt Damon.

Before watching this, Damon is an actor that I would call "solid", but would never think of as a tough fighter type, and yet, he shows some impressive fighting chops here, enough to make me believe that Bourne is as much of a badass as the script wants me to.

Damon also delivers in the emotional moments, crafting a fully-fleshed character out of a blank piece of paper. Strong supporting performances come from Chris Cooper as Treadstone head Conklin, Clive Owen as the other hyper-awesome assassin only know as "the Professor", and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as an African dictator targeted by Treadstone.

Franka Potente, as female lead Marie, is more of a mixed bag, sometimes doing well, but occasionally seeming a little too adaptable to what's going on around her. John Powell's score is very spy-appropriate, Saar Klein's editing is quick in action scenes, and Oliver Wood delivers an appropriately gloomy palette to suit a gloomy movie.

Overall, The Bourne Identity is a crackerjack kickstarter for the Bourne franchise, and I was totally sold by Damon's performance, blank characters notwithstanding.